Love Always Returns
by DarkBelieverAnge
Summary: Leon has become loveless because she was gone. He was not the only one who had lost someone. An unlikely friendship forms. but, love being love, it always returns. sometimes the people are not the same, but the feelings are. rated t for safety. plese r&r.
1. Chapter 1

_**A/N: It's been a while since I wrote in this section. For those who read **__**Hidden Love**__**, it will be coming back soon. I just haven't had time to work on that because I've put it on the back burner. I had to regroup with the ideas because it was becoming stressing to figure out what was going to happen next. So, I took a break from the story. Other stories pumped my ideas for that one out, as well as the one that I'm going to write right now.**_

_**Pairings: Leon/Squall and???? (I'm not giving it to you! You can review and try to guess!!!)**_

_**Setting: AU gamish. It's in the game, but after the second one. It's also going to be talking about the time before the game, when Hollow Baston was attacked by the Heartless. **_

_**Well, enjoy!**_

_**Disclaimer: I don't own the game or anything that Square Enix does. I own only my plot.**_

_**­­­**_

Chapter One

He ran down one of the back alley ways. He was tracking a Heartless down. The rain clouded his vision, but he knew that he was getting close to his mark. He silently cursed the abnormal weather. It was a hassle.

He came around the corner and was ambushed. He brought out his gunblade and started slashing. He heard someone behind him. She jumped over him and started fighting with her fists.

"Cloud's back?" he asked her. Tifa turned and grinned while she fought with the Heartless.

"Yeah, he's back to see Aerith," she said. Leon frowned at that. He thought that Tifa loved Cloud, but every time she surprised him.

They quickly finished off all of the Heartless. It had stopped raining, he noticed. She pulled her gloves off and sat on the ground. He put his blade down and joined her. She looked up at the clearing sky. She grinned.

"Why do you always follow Cloud?" Leon asked her abruptly.

"A promise I made to someone. Every time I see that sight, I think of that guy," she said. Leon looked over at her. She wore a tender expression on her face.

"When we were kids, he would always make sure that I was protected. He taught me how to fight, y'know," she said. She looked at the sky blue. "His eyes were that color."

"Who?" Leon asked her. She turned her head and looked at him.

"You were too involved in your career, weren't you?" she asked. Leon slowly nodded. She sighed and looked up at the sky again.

"Zack Fair," she said. "He was one of the soldiers for Hollow Baston. We protected the castle, when we had nobility. You were a part of the soldiers that protected the city, so you never crossed paths. He was very funny. He loved having a sense of humor. He was everything that I wished I could be. He was Cloud's mentor…"

"Cloud had a mentor?" Leon asked in bewilderment.

"Yeah. He taught Cloud everything he knew. He protected Cloud because he knew that Cloud needed it," Tifa laughed humorlessly. "He died during the final battle. He had taken a hit for Cloud. Cloud hadn't even noticed, he was so absorbed in the fight. I stopped and went over to him.

"He told me to always protect Cloud. No matter what, I had to protect Cloud. He told me that he loved me, and that I was his dream come true… a few minutes later, he died," she said with a single tear running down her left cheek.

Tifa sighed and looked up at the sky.

"After that, I just followed Cloud. I guess that it became an obsession because Cloud was my only link to the man I love," Tifa said. She smiled at Leon.

"What about you? Do you have anyone that you loved?" she asked him. He only nodded.

A couple of hours later, they were back at Merlin's. Yuffie was abnormally silent when she saw Tifa. Tifa had only nodded at her. Cloud and Aerith had disappeared. cid was on his computer making sure that everything was in working order.

"It was weird," he muttered. "That the Heartless came here," he said. Tifa lifted an eyebrow. He explained. "The system that I've set up kills them on sight."

"There must be a rupture, or something like that," Leon said. "It can always be repaired."

"Hey, guys, where are Cloud and Aerith?" Yuffie abruptly asked. Tifa looked at her and thought for a minute.

"They're probably at the village market. They always loved that place at sunset," she replied. Yuffie nodded.

"Why aren't you getting jealous?" she asked Tifa. Tifa laughed at the question.

"You know that answer," she said. Yuffie sighed.

"You are still not hung up on him," she said. Tifa nodded. Yuffie pushed her hands on the wall that she had been leaning on. She grumbled about something and went outside.

Merlin decided that time to pop out and look around. He saw tifa and motioned for her to talk to him. No one had noticed that Leon had disappeared.

He was in the bailey, overlooking the castle view. He sighed as memories came crashing around him.

"_I love you, you know," she said laughing at the sunset._

"_If I could do one thing in the world, it would be to freeze this moment in time," she said when they had walked around the market place quietly. _

"_Every time you get that serious look in your eyes, I know that there's going to be trouble," she had said when he always looked serious. He had smiled at her and she would grin back._

"Leave me alone," he said to his brain. "I don't want to remember. It hurts too much."

_**A/N: What do you think?**_

_**And I'm going to give one hint: Whoever she is, she's not dead. That's all!**_

_**Thank you for reading. I hope you review!!! **_


	2. Chapter 2

_**Love Always Returns**_

_**Disclaimers: KH characters belong to Square Enix… this plot belongs to me!!! And, if there are any FF characters in this, they belong to Square Enix too.**_

_**Chapter Two**_

Tifa stared out into the sky. She was having dreams of a man that she had let go a long time ago. Something in the way Leon talked about is woman, made Tifa remember Zack all too clearly. She remembered his smile, his laugh and the way his blue eyes glowed after they kissed. She had missed everything about him, because he had been the one to let her smile without a worry. Whenever she smiled now, it seemed as though it was forced.

"Zack… I miss you," she said to the almost starry sky.

Yuffie stood watching Tifa look up at the sky. Tifa was on Merlin's rooftop and looked extremely forlorn. She couldn't believe that Tifa looked forlorn. It was Tifa! She always had a smile on, even when people weren't looking. Yuffie knew, because she always looked when Tifa was sure that no one was looking at her.

Tifa had always been a hero to Yuffie. It was alien seeing Tifa so sad. Yuffie, with her ninja reflexes and senses, did not see that a young man was also feeling the same way.

Leon was running from everything. He didn't want to have the memories build up in his mind. She had left. She had chosen duty over him! He had told her that he never wanted to see her again! She had abandoned everyone because of duty…

That was why she was almost exactly like him. She normally followed her gut and ignored orders. But, when she had made a promise to someone, she always fulfilled it. It made her more appreciative of everything around her. She had always fulfilled her word. She never broke it, except to him. She had promised to stay with him forever, no matter what. The night of the final battle, she had chosen duty over him.

"_Squall, I have to protect her," she pleaded. "I love you, but my duty is to the Little Lady. Her grandmother would want this."_

"_Why are you always there for them before me?" he asked harshly. He was needed on the battle field, but he already felt his heart dying._

"_She is my duty. My mother was her mother's protector," she said. "We are all born with a purpose. Protecting her is my purpose." She had looked at him sadly and turned her back to him._

"_I will always love you. I promise that I will be back," she said._

She never stayed true to her promise. Even after ten years, she hadn't come back. He had assumed that she was dead.

_**A/N: The woman will be revealed next chapter. She's somewhere in the vicinity. The Little Lady will be revealed too. Lol. I can't wait to get the reviews for the next chapter. It will probably be up next Friday, or sooner. Idk. It depends on how fast I want this next chapter written. Sorry it was so short. I promise next chapter will be longer!!!**_

_**p.s. you know that you want to review, so just do it! Give into temptation just this once!! For every chapter you know that you want to review!!!**_


	3. Chapter 3

_**A/N: Well, we are already to chapter three. Just like I promised, I will reveal the woman. Maybe mid-chapter, after I've explained the "Little Lady" bit. Lol. I can say that I was completely random when I picked this idea out of my head. Random, but it connects w/ what we know about Kingdom Hearts I and II. **_

_**Thanks to:**_

_**Angel Sorano- I am updating really soon, just for you.**_

_**Chi- thanks you for the review and she's going to be revealed!!!**_

Chapter Three

Kairi sat in her classroom watching the grass on the field. It was going back and forth. It made her dizzy. She couldn't believe that time was going by so slow. She gasped as memories came over her again.

_There was fire around her. They were being smoked out of the castle. A young girl held her hand and they were rushing to the ship._

"_Little Lady, you must hurry!" she said. Kairi stumbled on one of the steps leading down to the loading dock. Her protector sighed and hoisted Kairi into her arms. "Don't worry, Little Lady. I will protect you." She had made sure that Kairi had gotten on the ship. They both had. That was the last Kairi remembered._

"Kairi, you okay?" Sora asked her. She looked at him confused. "You paled a minute ago."

"Yeah, I'm fine," she said. Sora nodded and they turned back to the work.

Toward the end of class, the teacher made an announcement.

"Class, you will have a student teacher here tomorrow. She will be teaching this class for the rest of the year. Be on your best behavior, please," the teacher said before everyone rushed out.

Kairi was standing in the parking lot. Sora and Riku had gone over to play ball with Wakka and Tidus. She just smiled and went on her way to the beach. She went down and sat on the sand.

"That's not good for you, Little Lady," a female voice called out. Kairi got up and veered to the direction of the voice. A young woman with black hair stood before her. She had chocolate brown eyes that danced with mirth. She had streaks of light blond in her hair that made her hair unique. It was her smile, though, that attracted people. Her smile was one of mischief and happiness. Kairi gasped and ran toward her.

Kairi went into her arms and started crying.

"Now, Little Lady, what did I tell you about crying?" she asked jokingly. Kairi was too busy crying. "Sh. I'm here. It's alright." Kairi eased into her protector's arms. The woman soothed over her and made sure that everything was alright.

"I waited for you, Rin," she said. "I waited, just like you told me too." Rin smiled and nodded.

"I know. I've heard about you all around the universe. You hold your own Keyblade?" she asked. Kairi nodded. "Your mother would have been proud of you. She would have been very proud." Kairi broke away from her when she heard Sora coming down the beach. She watched as Sora prepared to attack. Already knowing that he was there, Rin swung around and hit him in the diaphragm. He gasped and went back. Riku came from the other side, but he wasn't fast enough. Rin grinned and elbowed him. He almost dodged it, but it didn't do a full impact. She grinned as he came swinging at her. She took a sword that was shaped like the gunblade and swung it around him. Magic swished off of it and sent both Riku and Sora flying back. They landed faces first into the ground. Rin grinned triumphantly and looked back at Kairi. Kairi looked at concern for her friends. Rin shrugged her shoulders.

"They'll be alright," she said. "For legendary warriors, they are sorely lacking in skills." Kairi grinned and held herself together. She was grinning with happiness.

In Hollow Baston, Leon stood amazed as he felt his heart "alive" for the first time in ten years.

_**LOL!!! Mystery solved. For the true FFVIII fan, there is no other pair than that of Rinoa and Squall. Actually, that couple is the whole reason why I started reading fan fiction. They are the whole reason why I started writing, even though the majority of my work is Zack and Tifa stories. I will do more Rinoa and Squall, just not yet. I have other stories to finish. This one is up to whatever people want to happen. Rinoa and Leon will meet in a couple of chapters. Lol. You learn my reasoning of why he's called Leon. Lol. It's hilarious.**_

_**Until next time! Again, sorry for the shortness, the chapters will eventually be longer.**_

_**p.s. reviews are appreciated and adored!!! **_


	4. Chapter 4

_**A/N: Hello again. Updating is great. It means that the story moves. But, you know what else is awesome, getting REVIEWS!!! Not that I'm complaining. I love it when I see how many people have read my stories, but when I get no reviews for a chapter, I get a little sad. But, whatever. I'll continue writing because I love my stories. And I guess when I get no reviews, people love my stories to. **_

_**Anyways to chapter four…**_

Chapter Four

"I have a question," Sora said when he regained his composure. "Why do you call Kairi 'Little Lady'?" Rinoa and Zack looked at each other.

"Because she's nobility," Zack said. Rinoa nodded. She smiled at Sora.

"How do you think that Kairi was able to be one of the Princesses?" she asked him. "Sure, she's in love with you, but with that particular title, you have to have some royal lineage." Zack nodded.

"What do you mean by that?" Sora said. Zack laughed and rubbed his forehead. He looked at Kairi.

"You couldn't pick a brighter one, could you?" he asked. Rinoa swatted him with the back of her hand. He pretended to gasp in pain.

"Leave him alone," she said. Zack stuck his tongue out at her. "So what if she's satisfied by physical ambitions and not mental?" Riku snickered at that.

"Hey! That was mean!" Sora said. Zack rolled his eyes.

"Dude," he said. "For a legendary warrior, you are kinda dull-witted."

"Look," Rinoa said. "We have to get back to Hollow Baston. Kairi is one of the only nobles left from Radiant Garden. We have the codes for the computer, and we need to get going."

"What are you talking about?" Riku said. Sora just looked at both Zack and Rinoa.

"If you're going to go see Tron, you have to bring me," he said. "He won't let anyone else into the computer files unless he knows that I'm there." Zack looked at Rinoa. She shrugged.

"I'll stay here, if you don't mind," Riku said. He looked thoughtful. "I might take Selphie up on her offer." Zack snickered. Kairi gasped.

"She's a young lady!" Kairi said.

"So what? She offered, and I'm accepting," Riku said. He waved his goodbyes. "I'll see you guys later."

Kairi looked at Zack and Rinoa.

"So, how are we getting there?" she asked. They both grinned and pointed to the Gummy ship.

Back in Hollow Baston, Merlin stood in the bailey, looking out over the valley. He grimaced as he saw all of the Heartless coming out of the castle. Leon came up beside him and frowned.

"How many are there?" he asked. Merlin scanned the area.

"At least sixteen thousand," he said. "We'll need a miracle for this."

"Well, the king and Donald and Goofy are here. They should be able to help," Leon said. "I'll get Yuffie and Aerith ready. Tifa's probably itching for a fight. Cloud always wants to get his hands dirty."

"There are reinforcements coming, you know," Merlin told him nonchalantly. Leon nodded.

"Then when they get here, tell them to get down there and help out," Leon said. He took his gunblade and jumped out of the bailey. He landed cleanly on the valley floor. He grinned up at Merlin.

"No wonder she picked him as her knight," Merlin muttered. He watched as Yuffie and Aerith joined Leon. Yuffie was a little clingier to him than usual, Merlin noted as the girl would not let Leon out of her sight. Merlin felt something fly by him and saw Tifa run out into the air. She turned and saluted him. Cloud was already down there waiting for her. She made a clean landing right beside him. Merlin just shook his head and went back to his home to wait for his guests. He and Cid chatted for a while before they heard a bang on his door. He got up and opened it. He gasped as he saw his guests.

He had known that Kairi and Sora would be coming, but not the other two. Zack grinned. He wore a long leather coat and dark pants and a long dark shirt. His boots were dark too. He wore sunglasses that covered his eyes. Rinoa was almost the same. Her leather coat was dark brown; she had a blue shirt on and dark jeans on. She wore dark sneakers as her shoes. She also wore sunglasses that covered her eyes.

"We're here to talk to Squall," she said. Merlin nodded in awe.

"He goes by Leon now, kid," Cid cracked up. Rinoa nodded.

"So he did take the name?" she asked him. Cid nodded and went back to his computer. She looked at Sora and Kairi.

"Ready to fight?" she said. She turned to Merlin. "How many are there?"

"About sixteen thousand," he replied. Zack grinned broadly.

"So, that means about twenty-five hundred each," he said. Rinoa raised an eyebrow at him.

"Who says I'm going to compete this time?" she asked. He laughed.

"You always compete," he said. She shook her head.

"The one who loses has to teach the airhead how to fight," she conceded. "Same rules apply, right?"

"Yeah," Zack said. "Anything's legal."

"Good," Rinoa said and kneeled. She put her left hand to the ground and rotated it inward. She grinned and muttered something.

"HEY! THAT'S CHEATING!" Zack yelled. She grinned.

"You said anything," she said. He muttered under his breath. He took out his Buster Sword and split it into two swords.

"If you want to be like that, then first one who gets to three thousand wins," he said. She grinned.

"I'm halfway there," she said. They nodded to Merlin and ran toward the bailey.

"You should follow them," Merlin told Kairi and Sora. They nodded dumbly and ran after both of them. They got to the bailey and saw Rinoa bring out her sword. She grinned at them both.

"See you down there," she said. She jumped off the bailey and did a couple of flips before landing gracefully on her right hand. The earth shook and another fifteen hundred heartless died. Zack swore under his breath and ran after her.

"THAT IS CHEATING!" he roared. She grinned up at him and took off her sunglasses.

"IT IS NOT!" she roared up at him. He grinned and began to spin with his blades. His spinning sent cutting waves to the heartless. Two thousand disappeared instantly.

"I still win," she said when he got down. He groaned and looked up.

"Looks like their taking the long way," he mused. Rin grinned.

"They can get the ones that we missed," she said. She looked at him and he nodded. They put their weapons up and went into battle.

After three hours, both of them stopped. Rinoa looked up at the sky and heard Kairi pant for breath.

"At least you have your form down again," she commented. Kairi laughed wheezing. Sora grinned from the physical exertion. Zack gave him a nod of respect. Just as Rinoa was stretching, she felt someone come up behind her. She turned and saw Leon standing there.

"Hi," she said. She saw Zack's mouth widen and saw Tifa coming up with tears running down her cheeks. Zack took his sunglasses off and rush to her. He was whispering words to her urgently. She hit him a couple of times, but other than that, stayed in his arms without protest. Rinoa grinned and then froze as she saw Leon's furious expression.

"Explain," he said coldly. She stood in front of him rebelliously and crossed her arms.

"Make me," she said belligerently. He groaned and came right up to her so that there was nothing separating them

"Name when and where," he challenged. She laughed at him.

"I hear you're being called Leon now, Squall," she said. He grabbed her tightly.

"Don't call me that," he growled. She looked him straight in the eye.

"And why shouldn't I? It is your name," she said.

"Not anymore," he said. She softened a little bit.

"So you just had to take the nickname I gave you, didn't you? Such a brave lion you are," she said and touched his necklace. He closed his eyes and held her tightly.

"What are you doing here?" he whispered. "You have to be dreams… after wishing hard enough, I'm hallucinating… you've made me crazy, did you know that?"

"Same with me," she whispered back.

_**A/N: UPDATED!!! WHOOT!!! Told you I'd tell you how he got the name Leon. Next chapter will be the story behind the nickname.**_

_**Thank you for reading.**_

_**Hopefully some people will review.**_

_**Until next time!**_

_**DarkBelieverAnge**_


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